Rónán Burtenshaw
Deputy Editor
Free Education for Everyone (FEE) has issued a statement “overwhelmingly supporting” the occupation by officers of the Union of Students in Ireland (USI) and Students’ Union presidents of two government department buildings on Tuesday evening.
The group, including President Gary Redmond, had occupied first the Department of Enterprise and Jobs and then the Department of Social Protection, pledging to maintain the occupation until the Labour Party “clarified” its position on third-level fees. Labour party Minister for Education Ruairí Quinn had signed a pledge promising to oppose any increase in fees or cut to the grant in the run up to February’s general election, but has since indicated that such measures are likely to be included in the upcoming budget. Minister Quinn himself took part in a number of occupations during his time as a UCD architecture student in the 1960s.
USI Deputy President Colm Murphy negotiating with Gardaí during the occupation
FEE, which describes itself as “a grassroots group of students and college staff, set up to fight the re-introduction of fees while campaigning for free education”, had been involved in an occupation last year at the Department of Finance. The occupation involved over a thousand students, many of whom engaged in a peaceful sit-down protest outside, and ended in violent scenes involving Garda riot squads.
This protest, which occurred on the same day as last year’s national march but was not sanctioned by the USI, was condemned by them at the time. In a statement they said that they had been “saddened by the actions of a small minority who staged a sit-in protest at the Dept of Finance”. The statement went on to call it “anti-social behaviour” that was “completely separate from USI’s demo.”
FEE and USI also came into conflict at this year’s national march, when a group from FEE and Occupy Dame Street were prevented from rejoining the main march after engaging in a sit-down protest outside Fine Gael HQ. In a discussion with USI President Gary Redmond, FEE members in Galway characterised this as “political discrimination”. The USI have denied this, saying that the student stewards and Gardaí had prevented FEE members from re-entering because they were attempting to do so through a fire exit.
USI stewards stopping members of FEE rejoining the student protest earlier this month
During the conversation in Galway, FEE and USI appeared to reach an agreement about co-operating at some stage in the future, with Gary Redmond saying that the USI were “open” to it. He also said the organisation were “not opposed” to direct action, something which Tuesday’s occupation evidences.
FEE’s statement said that it supported the USI “taking direct action against Fine Gael and Labour’s plan to increase student fees and… implement cuts in the student maintenance grant, in particular for post-graduate students.” FEE, it said, “had always believed that direct action such as this is necessary to have any chance of winning the fight against fees.”
It went on to criticise the actions of the Gardaí on the night, saying that they “will always use force to remove occupiers, regardless of whether the occupiers are peaceful are not”.
FEE’s statement was, however, not entirely positive about the USI’s actions. It emphasised the need for wider participation in direct action, arguing that “huge numbers of students on the grassroots level have to be actively involved in organising, protesting and engaging in direct action, in a truly participatory fashion”. It went on to call the USI “hypocritical” for condemning last year’s occupation.
In response to questions and criticisms on its Facebook page the USI said that its occupation had been undertaken secretly because otherwise there “would have been security everywhere”. It also clarified its distinction between this occupation and that engaged in last year. The occupation of the two departments by USI officers, it said, “was part of a planned campaign when other avenues had been exhausted.” It also had a “clearly defined aim before setting out” and that was “one of the differences”. A Facebook group called ‘Free Gary Redmond’ has also been set up satirising the USI’s occupation and the President’s role in it.
Further criticism of the USI’s actions has come from TCDSU President Ryan Bartlett, who did not take part in the occupation. TCDSU will hold a town hall meeting on the subject of student fees in the Joly Theatre in the Hamilton Building tomorrow to “canvass the opinions of our members on the creation of a new policy”. It will begin at 7PM.
Representatives from the USI are due to meet the Labour parliamentary party on Wednesday afternoon after being released by Gardaí.
